The reliability of computed tomography-derived SYNTAX score measurement.

Area of Science:

• Cardiology
• Medical Imaging
• Interventional Cardiology

Background:

• The Synergy between Percutaneous Coronary Intervention with Taxus and Cardiac Surgery (SYNTAX) score (SS) is crucial for assessing coronary artery disease complexity.
• Accurate scoring is vital for guiding treatment decisions in patients with coronary artery disease.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare the SYNTAX score (SS) calculated using conventional coronary angiography (CAG) and computed tomography angiography (CTA).
• To evaluate the reliability and predictive value of CTA-derived SS in risk stratification for coronary revascularization.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective analysis of 107 patients undergoing coronary angiography.
• Calculation of SS using both conventional CAG and CTA.
• Statistical analysis including correlation (r-value) and agreement (κ analysis) between the two methods.
• Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis to assess CTA's predictive performance.

Main Results:

• A high correlation (r = .972, P < .001) was observed between SS calculated by CAG and CTA.
• Substantial agreement was found between the two imaging modalities based on κ analysis.
• CTA demonstrated high accuracy in predicting conventional CAG findings (area under curve = 0.96, P < .001).

Conclusions:

• CTA-derived SS is highly correlated with the SS obtained from conventional CAG.
• CTA can be reliably used for risk stratification prior to coronary revascularization procedures.
• CTA offers a valuable alternative or complementary tool for assessing coronary artery disease complexity.